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Topic: Over/Under till Sully starts? (Read 8034 times)

I know he is getting shafted by the refs but this guy just keeps getting better and better.

Today from David Thorpe on ESPN.com:

Better than his raw numbers suggest

SullingerJared Sullinger, Celtics | Rookie cardWhen NFL Hall of Famer Emmitt Smith was in high school, legend has it that he would close his eyes after first seeing how the defense was lined up and not open them until he felt contact, simply because he was so bored. He finished his prep career as the leading rusher in high school history, then earned the same historical record in the NFL.

When I watched Sullinger play before this season, I often thought of Smith's legend, because Sullinger so far outclassed most of his competition -- he was almost as dominant as a player can be in high school and in his two years at Ohio State. So when we see he's averaging 5 points and 5 rebounds for an average Celtics team, it would be easy to think he's not in the same class as the top players and certainly not in Smith's atmosphere.

But look deeper and you will see there is gold in Sullinger's game. It just needs the light of day to be seen.

Kevin Garnett might be a top-five defender if we consider every NBA big over the past 25 years -- that's how special he is. He's still almost at the top of his game on that end and probably the best help defender in basketball (though Joakim Noah is closing fast). Sullinger, though, is proving to be almost as good on defense for the Celtics as KG, a fact that gets lost because so many of their teammates are not on their level.

On the glass, Sullinger has been dominant, with a defensive rebounding rate of 22.1, second only to world-class athlete Andre Drummond among rooks. Sullinger has tackled the challenge of being more than a scoring machine beautifully, proving he can do the dirty work despite being such a star for so long. It will serve him well when he begins to get more offensive opportunities.

I give it another two weeks. When Wilcox can play again I bet they deal Bass and let Sully start. I would love to see them run just a few plays for this kid.

The refs absolutely hate Sullinger with a passion! I know rookies don't get respect from refs, but this is on an entirely different level. 70% of the foul calls on him are a joke.

The refs probably can't believe a player this young could be this strong. So anytime he is manhandling guys like West to get position, they assume it must be a foul.

Sully definitely does make some rookie fouling mistakes here and there. But tonight about 2 of them were a joke. They prob had enough of Sully and his physical play and kicked him out of the game before he hurt somebody.

He totally beat up West tonight. After the game he must of been like, who the heck is this kid.

I was going to make a topic about this after tonight's game...I probably still will.Basically titled 'Celtics have one of their biggest ever draft steals with Sullinger'.

I'd say they'll keep bringing him in off the bench for now, he's a beast and is a key to our second unit. He holds down the paint while Terry and Green score, if they miss, Sully is there to get a second look or dish it back out.

His defense is just awesome. He holds his feet and uses his size and strength to outmuscle EVERYONE. He was throwing David West around, he was manhandling Reggie Evans when we stomped the Nets.How good has he gotten in one third of a season!?I could see him averaging 15/10 easily as a starter on this team.

I actually think the refs are starting realize how smart and talented he is and are actually letting a lot of calls go that they were calling on him in the beginning of the season. At least vs the Pacers they were fair- they called some and they let plenty of them go and just let him be physical.

Danny Ainge committed highway robbery with this kid at number 20.Thumbs up Mr Ainge.

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"We are lucky we have a very patient GM that isn't willing to settle for being good and coming close. He wants to win a championship and we have the potential to get there still with our roster and assets."

quoting 'Greg B' on RealGM after 2017 trade deadline.Read that last line again. One more time.

I was going to make a topic about this after tonight's game...I probably still will.Basically titled 'Celtics have one of their biggest ever draft steals with Sullinger'.

I'd say they'll keep bringing him in off the bench for now, he's a beast and is a key to our second unit. He holds down the paint while Terry and Green score, if they miss, Sully is there to get a second look or dish it back out.

His defense is just awesome. He holds his feet and uses his size and strength to outmuscle EVERYONE. He was throwing David West around, he was manhandling Reggie Evans when we stomped the Nets.How good has he gotten in one third of a season!?I could see him averaging 15/10 easily as a starter on this team.

I actually think the refs are starting realize how smart and talented he is and are actually letting a lot of calls go that they were calling on him in the beginning of the season. At least vs the Pacers they were fair- they called some and they let plenty of them go and just let him be physical.

Danny Ainge committed highway robbery with this kid at number 20.Thumbs up Mr Ainge.

I called it one of our biggest draft steals right when danny ainge got him.

I suspect Bass will remain the starter for the remainder of the season.

I think that if Sullinger eventually gets the starting job while Bass is on the team, the trajectory should be him coming off the bench and increasingly being in there at the end of games. Once he becomes a fixture in the crunch time lineup for some time, then he might eventually slide into the starting role. I'm ok with the idea that that time might not be until 2014.

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"The worst thing that ever happened in sports was sports radio, and the internet is sports radio on steroids with lower IQs.” -- Brian Burke, former Toronto Maple Leafs senior adviser, at the 2013 MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference

DA should make Rondo AB Sully and Melo untouchable in trade scenarios. They are the foundation to the future of the Celtics.

Allow these kids to develop under the tutelage of KG and PP for the next two to three years. Make a big spalsh in Free agency when KG and PP retire or if they want to go chase a ring elsewhere, but please dont trade the core of RR AB Sully and Melo.

I think this game against Indy may have been his best game overall. He really made a positive impact on both ends of the court. I doubt he starts anytime soon but if Bass insists on throwing the ball away a lot, maybe it'll be sooner than later if Sullinger can keep progressing. Either way, this is the Sullinger I had hoped to see.

Kevin Garnett might be a top-five defender if we consider every NBA big over the past 25 years -- that's how special he is. He's still almost at the top of his game on that end and probably the best help defender in basketball (though Joakim Noah is closing fast). Sullinger, though, is proving to be almost as good on defense for the Celtics as KG, a fact that gets lost because so many of their teammates are not on their level.

Haha I knew this guy was an idiot. Three ridiculous things to say in a row. KG is arguably a top 3 defensive big over the past 60 years. And give me Tyson Chandler, Serge Ibaka, or Dwight Howard as a help defender over Joakim Noah any day.

The best: Sullinger is almost good on defense as KG. Do I need to say anything? He's not even an average help defender.... and you're going to compare him to one of the best all time? He's proven to be a decent man to man defender, but never makes rotations on time or provides any sense of help. I mean, he's not as bad as Bass but that doesn't change the fact that he's easily near the bottom of the league.